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Episode Recap

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Hae Young (Seo Hyun Jin) has become a zombie in her parents’ house, much to the concern of her mother, Duk Yi (Kim Mi Kyung). However, since they have no idea what’s wrong with Hae Young, neither parent has any idea what to do.

Meanwhile, the cause of Hae Young’s troubles, Do Kyung (Eric Mun) is recording the sound of a car as it spins around, with his stepbrother, Hoon (Heo Jeong Min) and his co-workers. The guys try to cheer up Do Kyung with cheesy jokes, but their efforts fall flat in the face of Do Kyung’s crankiness.

Hae Young, meanwhile, is drunk and out of control, and resorts to calling a radio show for advice. After insisting on voice modulation and anonymity, she tells the story of what happened between her and Do Kyung, and asks for advice. When the host offers Hae Young advice she doesn’t like, Hae Young yells at him, then inadvertently reveals her name. Jin Sang (Kim Ji Seok) is listening in as he drives, and so is the rest of Seoul it turns out, as the whole story is aired for everyone to hear. Afterwards, Hae Young belatedly takes a cold shower in her clothes.

At work, Sung Jin (Kwon Min) and Hae Young’s other co-workers come to Hae Young’s defense after listening to some colleagues laugh at her. Meanwhile, pretty Hae Young freezes out her co-workers when they ask her about the story. As she does, Soo Kyung (Ye Ji Won) comes by and tells her to show some remorse for causing this situation.

Meanwhile, Jin Sang calls Do Kyung with the news of what’s happened, telling him that everyone has been sharing the recording as the latest funny clip. In fact, Do Kyung’s co-workers are in the middle of laughing at it when they realize who the caller is.

The rumours are flying among the gossips at Hae Young’s parents’ neighbourhood, but Duk Yi shuts them down. When Hae Young’s dad goes to check in on Hae Young, he finds her in the washroom in her soaking wet clothing, staring blankly into space and shivering. Duk Yi brings Hae Young some food and tells her to hold her head up and eat. She asks Hae Young why she didn’t tell her, but Hae Young just silently eats. When Duk Yi tells her to forget about Do Kyung, Hae Young can’t answer; no matter how stupid it makes her, Hae Young can’t control how she feels.

Standing outside of their house, Jin Sang tells Do Kyung that he’s lucky his identity wasn’t revealed in Hae Young’s phone call, when a drunken Soo Kyung comes home. Soo Kyung tells Do Kyung that she’s disappointed in him, then gives him a hug to make him feel better. Jin Sang is shocked at this lack of punishment, but Soo Kyung explains that you can’t punish someone who’s done something terrible; they’re already in a lot of pain. As she stumbles inside, Jin Sang asks Do Kyung if he’s contacted Hae Young, but Do Kyung admits he hasn’t; he has no idea what to say. Jin Sang points out that he could say he loved her, but Do Kyung believes those words would just be to appease her. Jin Sang wonders why Do Kyung always interprets “I love you” so negatively. That night, Do Kyung tries to call Hae Young while standing in front of her house, but she turns her phone off and misses it.

The next morning, Do Kyung and Soo Kyung’s mother, Ji Ya (Nam Gi Ae) makes a visit to their house. She starts off by berating their stepbrother, Hoon (Heo Jeong Min) for freeloading, then Jin Sang. Ji Ya announces her impending wedding to Chairman Jang, then whines about how she can’t get in touch with Do Kyung. She tells them to pass on the message that Do Kyung owes her 7 million won for his present to Chairman Jang, and when Soo Kyung protests, Ji Ya points out that she’ll be bringing them a lot more money once she gets married. When Soo Kyung replies that they don’t need any money, Ji Ya responds by faking concern over Soo Kyung’s terrible appearance and lack of marriage prospects.

As they wait for the bus, Jin Sang tries and fails to comfort Soo Kyung. Later, on the bus, Soo Kyung falls asleep on another passenger, and Jin Sang straightens her out. When the bus brakes suddenly, Soo Kyung goes flying down the aisle. Jin Sang covers her embarrassed face and helps her off the bus, only to have Soo Kyung yell at him for gaping at her as she went flying. As Jin Sang tries to explain himself, Soo Kyung passes out in the street. Later, at the hospital, a doctor drops the bomb; Soo Kyung is pregnant. Unaware that he’s the only candidate for the father, Jin Sang lectures her on using protection, then runs off to find the doctor. Soo Kyung flails around in angry frustration.

Tae Jin, meanwhile, listens to the recording of Hae Young’s radio call over and over. Later, at dinner, his friend remarks how ridiculous the situation is, and Tae Jin can’t help but agree. Tae Jin tries to call Hae Young on his way back to his room, but her phone is still off.

Instead, Hae Young bursts out of her room at her parents and runs out the door, with Duk Yi’s instructions to bite Do Kyung’s butt off following behind her (I love her). Hae Young goes to her apartment, where Do Kyung is sitting sadly. When he walks out to his own apartment, Hae Young tells him how angry she is at him and how much she misses him. Do Kyung comes back to hug her, but he’s only offering comfort; he tells her that she’ll move on with her life, but she’s welcome to curse him any time.

Hae Young admits it’s the right time to end it, but begs him to stay with her until she feels better about things. Do Kyung looks stricken, but refuses, and offers to drive her home instead. Hae Young cries, then walks out, and takes the bus home. The next day, Hae Young’s father moves her stuff out of the apartment and back into their house.

Do Kyung isn’t home during the move, because he’s at Ji Ya and Chairman Jang’s wedding celebration. Do Kyung is broody and drinking too much, but it all seems to be going well until Chairman Jang’s daughter starts causing trouble. Clearly unhappy with her father’s fifth marriage, she first insults Ji Ya to Do Kyung, then implies that Ji Ya killed both of her former husbands to Ji Ya’s face. Ji Ya takes it in stride, but Do Kyung grabs Chairman Jang’s daughter and demands that she apologize to Ji Ya. The confrontation descends into a hair-pulling match between Ji Ya and Chairman Jang’s daughter.

Outside of Chairman Jang’s house, Ji Ya yells at Do Kyung for ruining everything, pointing out that this wedding is the only way she can find to restore his dead father’s lost fortune, so that Do Kyung will respect her again. Do Kyung tells her that they don’t have to live so pathetically, and walks away.

Inside the house, Chairman Jang’s daughter demands that Chairman Jang do something about Do Kyung. Chairman Jang is obviously plotting something, as he thinks back to the past, when he pulled out his investment from Tae Jin’s company, not because Do Kyung asked him to, but because Tae Jin’s friend and partner was cheating. Chairman Jang instructs his assistant to get in touch with Tae Jin, so he can help him get his revenge on Do Kyung.

Do Kyung sits in Hae Young’s empty apartment, and texts Hae Young for her account information, so he can send her security deposit back. She calls him instead, and curses him to be miserable without her. He can only say he’s sorry again, but when she hangs up on him, he starts crying.

The next day, Do Kyung goes out to record the sound of a field. Instead of enjoying the scenery, he lies in the grass with his eyes closed and has visions of the future: one where his mother begs him to apologize to Chairman Jang, one where Tae Jin tells him that everyone is back with the person they’re supposed to be with, one where he buys back his father’s house and turns Hae Young’s apartment into a studio, one where Jin Sang asks him if he’s been in touch with Hae Young and he says no, one where Soo Kyung tells him that one Hae Young has quit the company, one where he watches Hae Young coldly walking down the street, and finally one where he’s hit by a car. As he bleeds on to the road, Do Kyung relives his memories of Hae Young and apologizes to her. He finally says, “I love you,” and dies.

Back in the field, a tear runs down Do Kyung’s cheek. When he gets back to the car, Do Kyung finally finds his resolve. He calls his psychiatrist and tells him that he doesn’t care that he’s going to die, he just doesn’t want to die with regret. As Do Kyung drives like a madman, the psychiatrist tells him to go all the way, like a bull.

Comments

It’s really no wonder that Do Kyung spends all of his time suppressing his emotions, because he turns into a hot mess on the level of Hae Young when he lets them out. Unfortunately, given how much time he’s spent messing with Hae Young’s feelings while keeping his own in check, I’m finding it difficult to root for him now that he’s decided to do something, whatever it is.

Back to Hae Young, I found her uncomfortable to watch in the last episode, because she kept metaphorically beating her head against the wall, and this episode is no different. While pretty Hae Young still went back to work after being repeatedly rejected by Do Kyung, Hae Young spent most of this episode lying around her parents’ house, waking up only long enough to humiliate herself on national radio while drunk, and beg a seemingly reluctant Do Kyung to come back to her by playing on his pity. In all other respects, Hae Young has become completely dependent on her parents, while in effect, torturing them.

I was enjoying this show up until these last two episodes, but now I just want to slap these two upside the head and tell them to act like adults. Is Hae Young a teenager to brood and mope while her parents suffer and take care of her? Is Do Kyung so unable to make a decision that he goes back and forth while tormenting the obviously fragile object of his affections? Shouldn’t they be in therapy rather than having any kind of relationship with each other?

But, moving on from these two, in the last couple of episodes, almost everyone’s relationship has taken a turn for the serious. Soo Kyung’s pregnancy will probably fall like a bomb on Jin Sang, unless she takes a page from her brother’s book and stoically decides not to tell him that he’s the father. Hoon and An Na, meanwhile, seem to be on the outs as Hoon struggles with embracing maturity while dating a 21-year-old. Are we to have no light-hearted storylines? Has this romantic comedy descended entirely into melodrama, again? Come on, writers, give me something better than Do Kyung’s goofy co-workers for comic relief.

I’m pretty annoyed at them… I forgot to mention who I’m most annoyed at, which is the writers for throwing in a boring chaebol villain to take the fall. Sure, this lets Do Kyung off the hook for ruining Tae Jin and Hae Young’s lives, but it doesn’t really let him off the hook for trying to, anyway.